When an individual participates in contact sports activities such as football, lacrosse, hockey, and the like, it is common that parts of the individual's body are subject to impact and other physical contact. Various attempts have been made to provide padding as a means of protecting the individual during such activities. Conventional protective equipment can include, as nonlimiting examples, helmets, shoulder pads, thigh pads, and shin pads, each of which generally employs padding. Typical protective equipment may include reinforced-sponge type padding, such as a rubber sponge layer laminated with a stiff plastic layer. The primary purpose of such padding is to provide a sufficiently thick layer of cushioning material and mitigate a force of an impact on the individual.
Conventional protective equipment typically forms a barrier to direct impact, but does not sufficiently dissipate the impact energy. As a consequence, protective equipment known in the art has only a marginal effect on the reduction of impact injuries such as concussions, contusions, and the like.
There is a continuing need for a means to reduce the effect of an impact on individuals using conventional padding during athletic and other physical activities. Desirably, the means include supplemental protective undergarment that militates against impact injuries such as concussions, contusions and the like.